Amazon Working On 3D Smartphone – Report

Amazon is reportedly working on a 3D smartphone alongside a range of other products that would expand its hardware offering beyond its existing Kindle tablets and e-readers.

The Wall Street Journal reported the high-end smartphone would be able to display 3D images without the need for special glasses, just like the Nintendo 3DS handheld games console.

However, the Amazon handset would use retina-tracking technology to make images seem as though they were floating on the screen and appear three dimensional at all angles, according to sources.

Amazon smartphone rumours

It is believed Qualcomm would manufacture the device’s processors and it would not come as a surprise if it ran a modified version of the Android operating system, just like the Amazon Kindle Fire range of tablets.

The success of the Kindle Fire has led to persistent rumours of an Amazon smartphone, but any such device would enter a competitive market currently dominated by Apple and Samsung. However, Amazon believes that the 3D technology would be a key differentiator, especially since no other manufacturer has managed to consolidate itself as the third largest in the world.

The company has recently hired a Windows Phone veteran for a ‘secret project’ and has made a number of mobile related acquisitions, including mapping provider UpNext and a Siri-like startup.

The cost of the device remains a mystery, but Amazon has so far preferred to release its Kindle e-readers and smartphones as cheaply as possible and profit from the sale of content. The Amazon smartphone would act as a vehicle for the sale of apps, games, films and music, while it would also allow the company to collect data on maps, calls and software usage.

Last month, it was reported Amazon was working on a TV set-top box, while it is also believed to be working on another smartphone and an audio-only streaming device that would put it in direct competition with music subscription services such as Spotify.

These projects are known as Projects A, B, C and D – collectively the ‘alphabet projects’.

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